Leviticus 9, Psalm 10, Proverbs 24, 1 Thessalonians 3

Leviticus 9,

1 On the eighth day Moses summoned Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel.
 
2 He said to Aaron, "Take a bull calf for your sin offering and a ram for your burnt offering, both without defect, and present them before the LORD.
 
3 Then say to the Israelites: 'Take a male goat for a sin offering, a calf and a lamb-both a year old and without defect-for a burnt offering,
 
4 and an ox and a ram for a fellowship offering to sacrifice before the LORD, together with a grain offering mixed with oil. For today the LORD will appear to you.' "
 
5 They took the things Moses commanded to the front of the Tent of Meeting, and the entire assembly came near and stood before the LORD.
 
6 Then Moses said, "This is what the LORD has commanded you to do, so that the glory of the LORD may appear to you."
 
7 Moses said to Aaron, "Come to the altar and sacrifice your sin offering and your burnt offering and make atonement for yourself and the people; sacrifice the offering that is for the people and make atonement for them, as the LORD has commanded."
 
8 So Aaron came to the altar and slaughtered the calf as a sin offering for himself.
 
9 His sons brought the blood to him, and he dipped his finger into the blood and put it on the horns of the altar; the rest of the blood he poured out at the base of the altar.
 
10 On the altar he burned the fat, the kidneys and the covering of the liver from the sin offering, as the LORD commanded Moses;
 
11 the flesh and the hide he burned up outside the camp.
 
12 Then he slaughtered the burnt offering. His sons handed him the blood, and he sprinkled it against the altar on all sides.
 
13 They handed him the burnt offering piece by piece, including the head, and he burned them on the altar.
 
14 He washed the inner parts and the legs and burned them on top of the burnt offering on the altar.
 
15 Aaron then brought the offering that was for the people. He took the goat for the people's sin offering and slaughtered it and offered it for a sin offering as he did with the first one.
 
16 He brought the burnt offering and offered it in the prescribed way.
 
17 He also brought the grain offering, took a handful of it and burned it on the altar in addition to the morning's burnt offering.
 
18 He slaughtered the ox and the ram as the fellowship offering for the people. His sons handed him the blood, and he sprinkled it against the altar on all sides.
 
19 But the fat portions of the ox and the ram-the fat tail, the layer of fat, the kidneys and the covering of the liver-
 
20 these they laid on the breasts, and then Aaron burned the fat on the altar.
 
21 Aaron waved the breasts and the right thigh before the LORD as a wave offering, as Moses commanded.
 
22 Then Aaron lifted his hands toward the people and blessed them. And having sacrificed the sin offering, the burnt offering and the fellowship offering, he stepped down.
 
23 Moses and Aaron then went into the Tent of Meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people.
 
24 Fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown.

Psalm 10,

1 Why, O LORD, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
 
 
2 In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises.
 
 
3 He boasts of the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD.
 
 
4 In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.
 
 
5 His ways are always prosperous; he is haughty and your laws are far from him; he sneers at all his enemies.
 
 
6 He says to himself, "Nothing will shake me; I'll always be happy and never have trouble."
 
 
7 His mouth is full of curses and lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue.
 
 
8 He lies in wait near the villages; from ambush he murders the innocent, watching in secret for his victims.
 
 
9 He lies in wait like a lion in cover; he lies in wait to catch the helpless; he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net.
 
 
10 His victims are crushed, they collapse; they fall under his strength.
 
 
11 He says to himself, "God has forgotten; he covers his face and never sees."
 
 
12 Arise, LORD! Lift up your hand, O God. Do not forget the helpless.
 
 
13 Why does the wicked man revile God? Why does he say to himself, "He won't call me to account"?
 
 
14 But you, O God, do see trouble and grief; you consider it to take it in hand. The victim commits himself to you; you are the helper of the fatherless.
 
 
15 Break the arm of the wicked and evil man; call him to account for his wickedness that would not be found out.
 
 
16 The LORD is King for ever and ever; the nations will perish from his land.
 
 
17 You hear, O LORD, the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,
 
 
18 defending the fatherless and the oppressed, in order that man, who is of the earth, may terrify no more.
 
  

Proverbs 24,

1 Do not envy wicked men, do not desire their company;
 
2 for their hearts plot violence, and their lips talk about making trouble.
 
3 By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established;
 
4 through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.
 
5 A wise man has great power, and a man of knowledge increases strength;
 
6 for waging war you need guidance, and for victory many advisers.
 
7 Wisdom is too high for a fool; in the assembly at the gate he has nothing to say.
 
8 He who plots evil will be known as a schemer.
 
9 The schemes of folly are sin, and men detest a mocker.
 
10 If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength!
 
11 Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter.
 
12 If you say, "But we knew nothing about this," does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?
 
13 Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste.
 
14 Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.
 
15 Do not lie in wait like an outlaw against a righteous man's house, do not raid his dwelling place;
 
16 for though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again, but the wicked are brought down by calamity.
 
17 Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when he stumbles, do not let your heart rejoice,
 
18 or the LORD will see and disapprove and turn his wrath away from him.
 
19 Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of the wicked,
 
20 for the evil man has no future hope, and the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.
 
21 Fear the LORD and the king, my son, and do not join with the rebellious,
 
22 for those two will send sudden destruction upon them, and who knows what calamities they can bring? Further Sayings of the Wise
 
23 These also are sayings of the wise: To show partiality in judging is not good:
 
24 Whoever says to the guilty, "You are innocent"-peoples will curse him and nations denounce him.
 
25 But it will go well with those who convict the guilty, and rich blessing will come upon them.
 
26 An honest answer is like a kiss on the lips.
 
27 Finish your outdoor work and get your fields ready; after that, build your house.
 
28 Do not testify against your neighbor without cause, or use your lips to deceive.
 
29 Do not say, "I'll do to him as he has done to me; I'll pay that man back for what he did."
 
30 I went past the field of the sluggard, past the vineyard of the man who lacks judgment;
 
31 thorns had come up everywhere, the ground was covered with weeds, and the stone wall was in ruins.
 
32 I applied my heart to what I observed and learned a lesson from what I saw:
 
33 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest-
 
34 and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man.

1 Thessalonians 3

1 So when we could stand it no longer, we thought it best to be left by ourselves in Athens.
 
2 We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God's fellow worker in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith,
 
3 so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them.
 
4 In fact, when we were with you, we kept telling you that we would be persecuted. And it turned out that way, as you well know.
 
5 For this reason, when I could stand it no longer, I sent Timothy to find out about your faith. I was afraid that in some way the tempter might have tempted you and our efforts might have been useless.
 
6 But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you.
 
7 Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith.
 
8 For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord.
 
9 How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?
 
10 Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith.
 
11 Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you.
 
12 May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.
 
13 May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.